Transport Section — Full English Translation
La Lettre, 20 April 2026
Article 1: The government out of step on the rail-industry delays file
By Marc Fressoz
A report criticizing delivery delays on new trains has been sitting on the desks of the Transport and Industry ministers since January. The findings of the study have still not been made public, even as the issue is poisoning relations between Alstom, SNCF, RATP and the regions.
Photo caption: Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot. ©Julien Mattia/Le Pictorium/MaxPPP
Players across France’s rail sector are losing patience. Whether they are manufacturers like Alstom and Spain’s CAF, operators like SNCF and RATP, or funders like the regions, they have all been waiting since the start of the year for the government to publish the conclusions of a report on the state of rail transport in France, commissioned in early 2025. Drafted by Yves Ramette, a former RATP executive; Christian Dugué, an engineer specialized in naval military programmes; and François Feugier, an automotive expert, the nearly 400-page document delivers a scathing diagnosis of the chronic delays in delivering new trains and outlines solutions. Since January, it has been awaiting action on the desks of Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot and his counterpart at Industry, Sébastien Martin.
Even though the Middle East conflict has disrupted the executive’s agenda, the dossier appears all the more pressing given that these recurring delivery delays mean cost overruns, late-penalty charges and lost revenue (see La Lettre, 05/03/26). Above all, industry players are losing patience because of the countdown to the presidential election, which with every passing day narrows the window to implement the solutions the working group has developed — and, in some cases, to translate them into decrees.
Alstom in the crosshairs
The most emblematic case involves the new-generation TGV M, which SNCF has been expecting since 2024. The rail operator complains of substantial lost commercial revenue, unable to offer enough seats during peak holiday departure waves. Alstom has now promised to deliver the first units next summer. But the manufacturer — which has just issued yet another profit warning on the back of its delivery delays — must first resolve the malfunctions of the onboard IT system. The world’s number two rail manufacturer is in fact singled out by the report’s authors, particularly on its industrial organization and supply chain (see La Lettre, 20/06/25).
The three rapporteurs also examined the simplification of standards, specifications and other regulations. In France, the cycle running from the drafting of technical specifications to homologation procedures generally takes more than two years longer than in neighbouring European countries. This form of protectionism favours products designed solely for the domestic French market but limits economies of scale. The report also targets the engineers at SNCF and RATP responsible for placing TER and RER orders on behalf of the regions and of Île-de-France Mobilités (IDFM). They stand accused of imposing crushing technical specifications that stretch out train construction times. These can exceed eight years. This is a politically sensitive issue. In summer 2025, during a round of hearings with senior executives, Jean Castex — then CEO of RATP — asked to be heard in order to clear the agency of responsibility for the overruns on the “MI20” programme, the new rolling stock intended for RER Line B.
An organization overhauled
Elected officials of the transport authorities in the various regions also bear significant responsibility, notably in Île-de-France, for requiring train delivery timelines a little too closely aligned with the electoral calendar. This practice skews the rules of the game from the outset, since it forces manufacturers — keen to maximize their chances of winning tenders — to commit to unrealistic delivery dates. Another criticism levelled at elected officials: the demand for bespoke customization, which drives up the price of the trainsets.
Beyond the dusting-off of standards, the government plans to have the working group examine a potential big bang in the regional-train market. This is because the report examines an organizational overhaul. It will now be the regions — no longer SNCF and RATP — that define and purchase their trains, with the risk of fragmented orders, a driver of cost overruns.
— Marc Fressoz
Article 2: Transport Framework Law — local-government lobbies chart their course in the Senate
By Louis Cabanes
Activating their networks at the Palais du Luxembourg, associations of elected officials representing the regions, the departments and mayors are seeking to influence the allocation of revenues from future motorway concessions, and are at odds over the earmarking of part of the tax proceeds.
Photo caption: Carole Delga, President of Régions de France, and François Sauvadet, President of the Association of Departments of France. ©Éric Tschaen/Réa
Led by Carole Delga, President of the Occitanie regional council, the organization Régions de France (see La Lettre, 13/11/25) steered several amendments through the Senate during the examination of the draft framework law on transport financing. Being the first affected by this text given their competences over rail transport, the regions secured the adoption of three identical amendments — tabled by the Union centriste, Socialiste, écologiste et républicain and Écologiste – Solidarité et Territoires groups — against the opinion of the government and of rapporteur Didier Mandelli (Les Républicains). The regional presidents argued for better consideration of “fine-grained service lines across the territory within the programming of rail investments” — a major financial issue. These small lines make up a quarter of France’s rail network, providing a mesh of local coverage complementary to the major national routes. The regions feared being left out of the €2.5 billion allocation from revenues tied to future motorway-concession renewals (due in 2031 and 2036).
Conversely, the regional lobby suffered a setback in its push to organize “a national financing conference on metropolitan express regional services before 31 December 2026.” This request, advanced by Socialist, Green and Communist senators, failed to convince their right-wing colleagues — who hold the majority in the Senate — or Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot, himself from LR, who is sponsoring the text.
Departments and regions pulling in opposite directions
The Association of Departments of France (see La Lettre, 03/03/25), chaired by François Sauvadet (UDI), also sought to stake its own claim, even at the cost of stepping on the regions’ turf. A dispute pits the two lobbies against each other over the allocation of the vehicle-registration tax, worth €2 billion per year. Arguing that the regions have no competence over road matters, around twenty senators from the Rassemblement démocratique et social européen (RDSE) and Union centriste groups tabled similar amendments aimed at steering this money, proposing that it be “allocated exclusively to the departments via a national equalization fund.” During the examination of the budget, this same request had already been made by Senator Anne-Sophie Romagny (Union centriste).
The representative of the departments also teamed up with the Association of Mayors of France (AMF) to ensure that the future investment plan “explicitly” includes departmental and municipal road networks. Several amendments were tabled to this effect. Rapporteur Didier Mandelli sought to reassure his colleagues, arguing that the drafting of Article 1 of the text covered all roads, regardless of their nature. In reality, specific consideration of this point was made possible by the adoption of another amendment inspired by the Fédération nationale des travaux publics (FNTP). Centrist Senator Pierre-Antoine Lévi was behind this initiative, which secured senators’ support despite the government’s unfavourable opinion.
— Louis Cabanes
Translator’s notes / terminology anchors:
• Loi-cadre = framework law
• SERM (services express régionaux métropolitains) = metropolitan express regional services
• Desserte fine = fine-grained (local) rail service coverage
• Cahier des charges = technical specifications / tender specs
• Péréquation = (fiscal) equalization
• Homologation = type approval / certification